


In Sickness and Health

by AXEe



Category: The Orville (TV)
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, Fluff and Humor, Hurt/Comfort, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:33:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 10,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23679943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AXEe/pseuds/AXEe
Summary: Ed's sick and there's only one other person on the ship who can take care of him without getting sick herself...
Relationships: Alara Kitan/Ed Mercer
Comments: 31
Kudos: 25





	1. Stupid Germs

**Author's Note:**

  * For [limeybabyyy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/limeybabyyy/gifts).



> As thanks for the idea and a belated happy birthday :=). My first multi-chapter Ed/Alara fic, or should I say my first 'Edlara' fic, as they have been christened by Lurkerlynne, so thanks for that, because these two need a ship name :=).
> 
> Enjoy folks! :=)

******

It started with an earache.

Settling down across from Ed, Kelly frowned.

“Holy crap, Ed, you look like…,” she trailed off “well…like crap, honestly,” she shrugged “what the hell’s happened to you?” she asked.

Ed looked up as if noticing her for the first time.

“Oh, hey, Kel,” he greeted, absently rubbing at his right ear “I’m fine,” he dismissed “just a bit of an earache”

“Maybe you should have that checked out” Kelly suggested.

“It’s fine” Ed waved it off.

“What is it with men and not asking for help?” Kelly sighed. She leaned across the table and felt his forehead “Ed! You’re burning up!” she exclaimed, already out of her seat “c’mon,” she grabbed his arm, tugging him up and out of his seat “sickbay, now” she ordered….

******

“Well, you were right to bring him in, Commander,” Claire declared a few minutes later as she pushed a weakened Ed back down onto the bed when he tried—and ultimately failed—to sit up “you, Captain, have contracted Karillian sleeping sickness” she explained, holding out a tablet to both Ed and Kelly.

“Karillian sleeping sickness, I think I had that once as a kid” Kelly remarked.

“You probably did,” Claire nodded “most people get it at least once in their lives,” she explained “it’s not typically fatal, but it _is_ highly-contagious to Humans, so you’ll have to be confined to quarters, and someone will have to look after you for a few days”

“But, wait,” Kelly held up a hand “if it’s contagious to Humans, who’s going to keep an eye on him?”

“Well, actually, there are some species that have a natural immunity to the virus” Claire explained.

“Not Bortus,” Ed groaned “please, dear god, anybody but him”

“Actually, Moclans are just as susceptible to the virus as Humans,” Claire explained “in fact, the only crewmember onboard the _Orville_ who is immune is Alara”

“Alara?” Ed sat up suddenly “no!” he exclaimed “I mean…she’s chief of security,” he added hastily when the two women stared at him “she’s got other, more important things to do than take care of a sick man”

Claire and Kelly looked between each other.

“OK, well then…what about Isaac?” Kelly suggested “I mean, he can’t get sick at all. Not unless you count computer viruses”

“I would strongly recommend against that, actually,” Claire warned “I might need Isaac’s help in ensuring that no one else onboard is infected,” she explained “and plus, we might need him to maintain the ship if the rest of the senior staff becomes sick,” she added “besides,” she turned to Ed “do you _really_ want _Isaac_ of all people as your caregiver for the time being?”

“Well how long’s this bug last?” Ed asked.

“It varies from person to person,” Claire shrugged “it could be a few days, or a few weeks, no way to tell”

Ed frowned, clearly trying to imagine Isaac being his nursemaid for more than a few minutes.

“I take it back, Alara’s fine” he declared.

“I thought you might prefer that,” Claire chuckled “I’ll have Nurse Sil’a escort you back to your quarters” she explained, making a note on her tablet

“Sil’a?” Ed asked.

“She’s nice, you’ll like her” Kelly promised as a tall, vulpine-like woman came over and, with a soft smile, helped Ed to his feet.

As Ed wobbled out of the room, Claire glanced at Kelly curiously.

“I wonder why he was so reluctant to have Alara help him out,” she wondered “they’re normally so close”

Kelly smirked.

“Let’s just say that Ed wants to be…‘closer’ to Alara” she chuckled.

Claire’s eyebrows rose.

“Oh really?” she asked “hmm, I wonder how Alara feels about that” she mused.

“You didn’t know?” Kelly asked “the girl’s got it bad for him”

“No kidding,” Claire smirked “and, how exactly, do _you_ feel about this?” she wondered.

“Hey, Ed and I are divorced,” Kelly shrugged, waving her hands “none of my concern who he dates now”

“Smart answer,” Claire chuckled. She frowned “you don’t think that we just unintentionally played matchmaker, do you?” she nodded in the direction that Ed had disappeared to.

But before Kelly could answer she suddenly let out a loud, painful-sounding sneeze.

“OK,” Claire took her by the arm “you know what, I think we’d better get you checked out for Karillian sleeping sickness too,” she guided Kelly over to the bed and eased her down on to it “down we go”

Pinching her nose with a pained groan, Kelly swore as Claire began her examination.

“Stupid Ed and his stupid germs” she grumbled…


	2. Stupid Feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update! Chapter TWO! Enjoy! :=)

******

“ _You sure that you’re up for this?_ ” Kelly asked over the commline an hour later. Bundled up under a synthesized copy of great-granny Greyson’s handmade knit throw (a poor substitute for the original, obviously) in her quarters, she sipped a mug of hot lemon tea as she assessed Alara over the viewscreen.

“I’m fine,” Alara nodded “except…how did the captain get sick anyway?”

“ _Dr. Finn thinks it was when we stopped over at Sigma Station last week for an overhaul,_ ” Kelly explained as Alara gathered the necessary supplies from the synthesizer “ _look, I’d do this myself,_ ” she began, only to break off into a coughing fit.

“You OK?” Alara asked, peering intently at the viewscreen.

“ _Fine,_ ” Kelly sniffled “ _anyway, if Ed gives you any trouble just let me know,_ ” she explained “ _I’m sure that I can convince him_ ”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Alara nodded “so, how come you’re not as sick as Ed?” she wondered.

“ _According to Claire it has something to do with biology,_ ” Kelly explained “ _I had this once as a kid, so I already have a mild immunity to it to begin with,_ ” she paused to sneeze “ _key word there, ‘mild’,_ ” she muttered “ _hey,_ ” she called out when Alara was about to close the channel “ _off the record, are you…sure that you’re going to be OK with this? I mean with your…you know…attraction to Ed?_ ”

Alara smirked and shook her head.

“Bye, Kelly”

“ _Wait! I was seri—_ ” Kelly protested as the channel closed.

Scowling at the now-blank wall screen, Kelly tugged the throw tighter around her.

“Something tells me that this is not going to go well,” she muttered. She looked to her small fuzzy companion “am I right?”

The small threadbare teddy bear had no answer of course, and Kelly just pulled the old favorite toy close…

******

Alara frowned as she double-checked the instructions that Dr. Finn had given her: keep an eye on the Captain’s temperature, make sure he drinks plenty of fluids and that he eats even if he wasn’t feeling hungry.

Straightening her uniform jacket, Alara rang the chime, seeing on the panel that the doors were unlocked. Pressing the ‘open’ key, she was confronted by the humming blue haze of a quarantine field in the doorframe. Stepping through it—and shivering at the slight tingle of the field as it swept across her skin—she looked around, cringing as she spotted Ed.

Ed lay sprawled on the sofa, one leg and one arm dangling off the edge as he curled up under a pile of blankets, looking far smaller and weaker than she’d ever seen him. Lifting his head as he saw her, he still managed to flash her a weak grin and a shy wave.

“Hey,” he croaked out as she came over to his side “what brings you by?” he chuckled. Grunting, he tried to push himself up into a sitting position and, with a little help from Alara, managed it.

“Well, nice to see that you’re sense of humor is still intact,” Alara chuckled. She held up the multijector, which Ed groaned at the sight of “Dr. Finn asked me to give one of these every three hours” she explained.

“Fine,” Ed groaned. He thrust an arm out in her general direction “fill ‘er up,”

Smirking, Alara eased back his sleeve, gently taking his arm, noting how clammy and pale his skin looked as she pressed the device to his arm and injected the medicine.

“What now?” Ed wondered as she withdrew the device “do I get a lollipop or something?”

“Do you want one?” Alara asked.

Ed shrugged.

“Couldn’t hurt,” he muttered before he suddenly broke out into a coughing fit. Cringing, Alara helped him sit up as he reached for a wad of tissues and spat up something into them, grimacing as he dared to look at its contents. Tossing the tissue away in random corner (where it joined an already-sizable pile of other used tissues) he flopped back against the sofa.

“Sorry,” he mumbled “hope I don’t gross you out”

“Its fine” Alara assured him as she stood up and made her way over to the food synthesizer, accessing the file that Dr. Finn had already sent to the unit, a steaming bowl of soup shimmering into existence. Smiling appreciatively at the pleasant—if alien to her—smell, Alara carried the bowl back over to the sofa and held it out towards Ed.

“Soup?” he asked, managing to lift his head and peer into the bowl.

“A recipe from Dr. Finn’s family,” Alara explained, absently stirring said soup “chicken soup with pepper flakes” she explained.

Grimacing, he turned away.

“I’m not hungry” he said as he made to push the bowl away only for her to swat his hands away.

“Dr. Finn says that you have to eat even if you’re not hungry” she explained as Ed attempted to cocoon himself in the blankets.

“If I take one bite of that I’m going to puke it up all over you,” he proclaimed from within his cocoon “you really want that?” he challenged.

“I want you to get better,” Alara countered, peeling one corner of the cocoon away, exposing his face which she quickly thrust the bowl and accompanying spoon towards “eat” she encouraged.

“I could order you out of here” he threatened.

“Doctor’s orders override captain’s orders,” Alara reminded him “now, come on, this bowl is hot and it’s burning my hands”

Grumbling, Ed took the spoon, pushing himself upright again, and then took the bowl from her…

******

**One spoonful of soup later…**

“Oh, god, Alara I am _so_ sorry” Ed apologized as she tossed her uniform jacket into the recycler.

“It’s all right,” she assured him “if anything, it’s my fault for not listening to you. After all you _did_ warn me,” she pointed out as she grabbed a newly-synthesized uniform jacket from the synthesizer “but you get points for missing my shoes” she added as she slipped the jacket on, not bothering to zip it up for the time being.

“Yeah, too bad I wasn’t actually aiming anywhere in particular,” Ed grumbled as she came over to him and sat down, holding up the medical scanner and frowning at the results “any change?” Ed wondered.

“I’m not sure,” she admitted “I’m sending the results to Dr. Finn, hopefully she can tell us if you’re getting better or not,” she reached out, gently holding a hand to his forehead “you don’t feel warm” she noted softly.

“Yeah?” Ed asked.

“Yeah,” she nodded.

For a moment, they stayed like that, as if both frozen in place. Then, Alara blinked and, awkwardly clearing her throat, pulled her hand away.

“Well,” she began “I should get to the bridge” she muttered, standing up. And, watching her, Ed wondered if Xelayans could blush, because she certainly was acting like she was embarrassed.

“Oh. Right” he said and Alara frowned. Was that disappointment she heard in Ed’s voice?

“Uh, Claire said that you need another dose of medication in the next three hours,” she explained “so, I’ll see you then?”

“I’ll be here,” Ed smirked “hey,” he called as she stepped through the quarantine field “thanks” he said.

She smiled shyly in reply.

“No problem, sir” she nodded.

“Ed,” he corrected “anybody who doesn’t mind it when I throw up on them gets to me by my first name” he grinned. And even with his bright red nose and puffy eyes he still looked utterly adorable to her.

“OK,” she nodded “Ed it is,” she said softly as the doors slid shut.

Standing alone in the corridor, Alara sighed, tiredly rubbing at the back of her neck.

“I am _so_ screwed” she muttered.

******

On the other side of the doors, Ed buried his face into a pillow.

“I am _so_ screwed” he muttered into it…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if Kelly has a teddy bear in canon, but it was just too cute of an image to pass up :=)


	3. Stupid Attractions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter THREE! Enjoy folks! :=)

******

About fifteen minutes after Alara had left the meds had started to kick in. Feeling slightly _less_ like a half-dead fish, Ed suddenly realized that he needed to use the bathroom.

 _‘OK, OK, you can do this, Mercer,’_ he told himself _‘come on, just got to get up’_

Throwing the blanket aside (which he instantly regretted as he started shivering) he grabbed the arm of the sofa and _slowly_ and _painfully_ pulled himself up into a sitting position.

When the room didn’t start spinning and his stomach continued cooperating, he deemed it safe to continue. Swinging his legs out, he carefully put one foot on the floor, then the other, before bodily aiming himself in the direction of the stairs leading up to the sleeping area (and, most importantly right now, the bathroom) he took a breath.

Usually the stairs were, at worst, a minor annoyance, but right now with his nose dripping like a leaky faucet, his sinuses clogged up with god knew what, and his lungs making that funny whistling sound, the bathroom might as well have been across the entire galaxy, and he just really wanted to lay back down.

Unfortunately that meant wetting himself (ew). Even worse was the thought that when Alara came back in three hours she might be forced to clean him up.

Nope. Not having it. Her hands on his naked body was just too tempting. Nope, he was going to go and pee like a dignified human being.

Taking a breath (that whistling sound was really annoying), Ed got a good grip tight grip on the sofa cushions and pulled himself upright to his feet. For a moment he triumphantly stayed upright but then, slowly, like a tree being cut down almost, he was suddenly aware of the room slowly tilting down as the carpeting suddenly rushed up towards his face.

“ _Crap!!!_ ” he bellowed out as his head connected with the carpeting…

******

Meanwhile, one deck down from Ed’s quarters, Kelly looked up at the chime from her doors.

“Come in” she called out, wincing at how scratchy her voice sounded. As the doors slid open, Kelly smiled and waved at her visitor from her little nest on the sofa.

“Hi,” Alara waved back from the other side of the quarantine field “mind if I come in?”

“No, sure, come on in,” Kelly grinned “I could use the company,” she admitted as Alara stepped through the quarantine field and sat down on the edge of the coffee table opposite her “so, how’s Ed?” she asked.

“Terrible,” Alara sighed. She suddenly pushed herself upright and started to pace back and forth “I can’t do this,” she exclaimed “I mean I thought I could, but I can’t, I just can’t”

Kelly sighed.

“Yes, you can” she encouraged.

“No, no,” Alara frantically shook her head “no, I can’t. Nope, I won’t do this. You can’t make me do this”

“OK, first of all, sit the hell down, you’re making me dizzy,” Kelly sighed “second, what the hell happened?”

Alara ranked a hand through her hair, making it stick up in places as she nervously sat back down, looking ready to bolt any second.

“I…,” she began “I can’t be professional about this” she explained.

“What?” Kelly scoffed “Alara, you are one the most professional people on this ship aside from Bortus,” she exclaimed. She softened her tone and scooted forwards “does this have to do with your feelings for Ed?” she asked gently

Alara frantically shook her head as she stood up and started pacing again.

“I’m not going to talk about that,” she vehemently waved her hands “I shouldn’t even have mentioned it to you in the first place, how did you even get me to admit it?”

“I think it was that double shot of tequila,” Kelly deadpanned “come on, just tell me,” she encouraged “it’ll make you feel better, I swear”

Sighing, Alara flopped down on the sofa besides Kelly.

“I just wanted to hug him,” she said “Ed, I mean”

“Well I wasn’t thinking Isaac,” Kelly laughed and then winced as that brought on a coughing. Reaching for her own wad of tissue, she waved off Alara’s hands and managed to sit up on her own. Tossing the used tissue away, she leaned back, taking a breath “sorry,” she mumbled “so, you were saying about Ed?”

“Oh,” Alara blinked “right. Well, it was just…seeing him like that, so…small and…miserable looking,” she shrugged “I just wanted to hug him and never let go” she admitted.

“I can see that,” Kelly nodded “Ed _is_ very huggable,”

Alara groaned loudly and, grabbing a pillow, dropped it over her face and _screamed_ into it.

Watching this, Kelly looked towards her teddy bear.

“I was right,” she told it softly “this is not going to end well”


	4. Stupid Thoughts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter FOUR! Enjoy! :=)

******

Three hours came and went with surprising quickness. Realizing that she couldn’t put it off any longer, Alara had grabbed a multijector loaded with the antiviral from the synthesizer in her quarters and then made her way to Ed’s. Using her security override, she stepped through the quarantine field and looked around, not seeing Ed anywhere.

Frowning, she quickly climbed the stairs up to the sleeping area, stopping as she finally spotted him, unable to keep the stupid grin off her face as she took in the sight of Ed curled up in a ball on his bed, a pillow tightly clutched to his chest, and some part of her suddenly went _aww!_ at the sight.

It was a very childish part of her, one which was ruthlessly crushed into a strangled peep. She was the chief of security of a Union starship, Union chiefs of security did not go _aww!_ after all (no matter how utterly adorable their captain looked). Make that _especially_ not at their captain.

Softly approaching the bed, she gently sat down on the edge of the mattress and, giving into temptation, slowly reached out and began to gently comb her fingers through Ed’s hair, a part of her thrilling at being this close to him as Ed shifted in his sleep, his head moving to follow her hand as if seeking out her touch and even with the small puddle of drool under his chin she found the move adorable.

This was bad, this was _so_ bad, it was so inappropriate, he was asleep and sick, she should _not_ be doing this. Reluctantly, she pulled her hand away, resting it on his shoulder and giving him a gentle shake.

“Ed?” she whispered.

“ _Mmm,_ ” he screwed up his face in clear annoyance “just five more minutes, Mom,”

Alara snickered at the oh so clichéd but typically Ed-like response, which seemed to wake Ed. Groaning, he blearily opened his eyes, squinting up at her before slowly unsticking his head from the sheets.

“Ugh,” he wiped at his mouth, grimacing before he squinted up at Alara again “been three hours already?” he asked.

“Yep,” she nodded as she held up the multijector “come on,” she encouraged as he grimaced even as he offered an arm “I don’t know why you’re even complaining about the injections, it’s not like it’s a needle” she muttered as she pulled the multijector away.

“It’s the principle of the thing,” Ed shrugged as he slowly pulled himself up into a sitting pose “so, guess I’ll see you in three hours?” he asked.

“Oh” was that disappointment he saw on her face?

“Something wrong?” he asked

“No, no,” she shook her head “I just…thought that you’d like some company for a while, that’s all” she shrugged.

She was definitely disappointed. He needed to fix this, quickly.

“Well, I would,” he began “really, but…don’t you have bridge duty?”

“I got Ensign Keyali to sub for me,” she explained “but that’s all right, I’m sure I can find something to do for the next three hours”

“No, wait, wait, hold on,” Ed objected hurriedly as she turned to leave “I mean, hey, if you got someone to cover for you, then come on, sit down, take a load off”

A shy smile danced on her lips and she softly nodded.

“Thanks” she said softly.

Ed silently cheered in his head (any physical activity in the real world could result in a coughing fit and/or another puking incident. Neither of which he wanted to happen). Unable to completely keep the stupid grin off his face, he settled for what he hoped was an expression that could be described as: _‘cool and casual’_

“All right,” he said “so, got three hours to kill till my next injection. You, uh, wanna watch a movie or something?”

“Sure,” Alara nodded “that’s sounds nice,” she frowned suddenly “wait right there,” hurrying down the stairs, she returned a few seconds later carrying a tray which she brought over to the bed and set down besides Ed “there we go,” she beamed “breakfast in bed. Well, lunch actually, but you get the idea”

Leaning over, Ed examined the tray, which contained some toast, a bowl of oatmeal, and some fresh fruit. Suddenly feeling his stomach rumbling to life, he grabbed some of the toast and gave it cautious nibble, nodding to himself when it stayed down.

“C’mon,” he gave the mattress a pat “sit down”

“Oh,” blinking, Alara _very cautiously_ sat down on the bed, keeping herself as close to the edge as possible without risk of falling off “so, what movie did you want to watch?” she asked.

Ed grinned.

“You’re going to love this one, I swear,” he promised “computer, movie, _Raiders of the Lost Ark_ ” he requested…

******

Despite his sudden surge of energy, Ed had fallen asleep soon after the movie began, only just managing to make to the scene where Indy escaped from the giant boulder before he was out like a light.

For her part, Alara had quickly lost interest in the movie. For one thing she had seen it before several times over and for another; it was much more interesting to watch Ed sleep.

Giving into temptation, she wrapped an arm around him and pulled him close, gently pillowing his head against her shoulder.

 _‘Kelly’s right,’_ she realized _‘I do have it bad’_

And despite her every instinct telling her that it was still a Very Bad Idea™ she couldn’t resist pressing a gentle kiss to the top of Ed’s forehead…


	5. Stupid Fantasies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter FIVE! Keep an eye out for a reference to one of my favorite sci-fi books. Enjoy! :=)

******

_Ed stepped onto the bridge with a bit of spring in his step. Pausing, he took a look around the room, noting that everything looked different, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it._

_At the helm, Gordon and John were having a cook off. Meanwhile, at the science station, Isaac was playing chess with a chicken (or was it a hen?). The tactical and operations stations had been replaced with an aquarium, a calico cat sitting atop it trying to reach the fish inside._

_Sitting in the captain’s and first officer’s chairs cross-legged and each wearing a fruit hat, Kelly and Alara appeared to be meditating._

_“Uh, guys?” Ed frowned as he approached both women._

_They both slowly exhaled._

_“Yes, Ed?” they both asked simultaneously._

_“Is everything…OK in here?” Ed asked._

_“Of course” was the simultaneous answer._

_“Captain!”_

_Ed turned at the shocked exclamation, seeing Claire—dressed as a circus clown minus the makeup—hurrying over to him._

_“You’re not in proper uniform, sir” she exclaimed._

_“I’m not?” Ed echoed._

_“No! Of course not!” Claire exclaimed “you forgot your goldfish”_

_“Goldfish?”_

_She held up a glass beaker with a bright orange goldfish happily swimming inside._

_“Now,” she suddenly gripped his chin “tilt your head so I can put this in your ear”_

_“Wait! What?!!!!”_

“Ed! Ed! Ed, wake up!”

Ed jerked, suddenly finding himself in his bed, in his quarters, and—thankfully—with no fish in his ear. However, just to be sure, he reached up and felt both ears. Nope, no fish.

“You OK?” Alara asked.

“Huh?” Ed blinked, looking over and suddenly remembering that she was still there besides him “oh, yeah,” he nodded “sorry. Just…a really weird dream”

“A fever dream” she nodded.

“Must’ve been,” he nodded “ugh! Dreamed I had a fish in my ear” he complained with a shudder.

“A fish?” Alara asked.

“Don’t ask” Ed muttered as he pushed himself upright with a wince.

“You need a hand?” Alara asked.

“No, I got it” he replied as he slowly made his way to the bathroom. Leaning against the sink, he pulled a face at his reflection, he looked _awful_ , he was pale, his nose looked like Rudolph’s, and he had so many bags around his eyes he could probably be mistaken for a raccoon. Turning to more immediate matters he succeeded in using the facilities without injury, embarrassment, or mess.

Drying his hands, he shuffled out of the bathroom but paused in the doorway at the sudden sight before him, struck dumb. At some point, Alara had removed her uniform jacket and boots, both of which had been neatly set aside on a plush recliner in the corner (which had come with the ship and Ed had never really bothered to use) and she now lounged on the bed, one knee drawn up as she stared out at the nebula that they were passing through, the shifting multicolored lights dancing and playing on her features.

It was an image that Ed could easily imagine being a part of a larger fantasy. He could see it now, the two of them meeting in the corridor after a long shift, stepping through the doors, settling down for dinner, and then, crawling into bed for the evening.

 _‘Oh yeah,’_ he suddenly thought _‘I am one hundred percent totally screwed’_

“Ed?” Alara’s soft call snapped him back to reality, and he blinked to find her looking at him curiously “you OK?” she asked.

“As ‘OK’ as I’ll ever be,” Ed chuckled, which brought on a coughing fit, which made him lose his balance and stumble into the wall. Instantly, Alara was off the bed and by his side, strong yet gentle arms wrapped around his waist, holding him up.

Getting his breath back, he blinked in surprise as she scooped him in a bridal carry and carried him back over to the bed, gently setting him down.

“Thanks,” he mumbled “so, uh, time for my next injection?”

“Not yet,” Alara shook her head “we’ve got another hour”

“Oh,” he nodded, not quite sure what to do. He _wanted_ to ask her to climb back into bed with him for some more snuggling, but he doubted that conversation would go over well “so, now what?” he asked instead.

“Well, we could try for another movie” she shrugged.

Ed tried to keep the stupid grin off his face.

“I’m game if you are” he nodded.

Again that soft, shy smile of hers appeared as she nodded and settled down in the bed next to him…


	6. Stupid Events

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter SIX! Enjoy! :=)

******

Ed shifted, blinking away at a gentle pressure on his arm, a hand gently shaking his shoulder

“Ed” Alara’s voice murmured softly from behind him

Grumbling, he shifted, absently rubbing at one eye

“Medicine time already?” he asked.

“Yep,” Alara answered as she took his arm, the familiar tingle of a multijector playing along his skin a few seconds later “sorry,” Alara apologized “didn’t mean to wake you”

“No, no, it’s fine,” Ed replied sleepily “I need my meds after all” grunting, he rolled over, suddenly startled at how _close_ she was, practically nose-to-nose with him.

For a long moment, they stayed like that, frozen, as if both realizing the implications of this change in their status. Then, Ed reached up, his thumb grazing across her cheekbone in a feather-light touch, which she leaned into even as a clear expression of doubt and uncertainty crossed her face.

Feeling bold, he suddenly leaned in, pressing a gentle kiss to her cheek, it was light, chaste, non-sexual (not to mention hygienic), but she reacted as if he had kissed her full on the mouth.

Namely, she bolted up and off the bed so fast that he felt dizzy.

“Alara, wait!” he tried, only to be hit by another coughing fit. By the time he had stopped hacking up a lung (and other assorted internal organs) she was already frantically grabbing her boots and jacket, actually ripping one of the sleeves of her jacket as she threw it on “hey, hey,” grunting, Ed managed to crawl across the bed to the edge of the mattress and grab her arm, stopping her “come on, calm down,” he urged “let’s just sit down and talk about this” he pleaded.

“No, no,” she frantically shook her head “we can’t talk about this!” she exclaimed “because if we talk about it, then that means that it happened! I mean, you, you…,” she trailed off, raking a hand through her hair “why did you have to be so nice?” she demanded.

Ed blinked.

“You lost me” he admitted.

“Nice!” she exclaimed “with everyone! Me, Kelly, the whole crew likes you! No one has a bad thing to say about you!” she shook her head but allowed him to gently tug her back down to sit on the edge of the mattress.

“You’re nice,” she continued “you don’t see my strength as a drawback, and I guess, I thought that meant that…something _more_ could happen….between us”

“Why can’t it?” Ed wondered softly, awkwardly pushing himself up into a half-sitting pose.

“It just _can’t_ ” she insisted, shaking her head.

“Why not?” Ed pushed “we’re both adults here”

“Seriously?” she demanded “OK, first of all, you’re my captain, I’m pretty sure that the Union doesn’t like captains dating their subordinates, and secondly…” she trailed off.

“Secondly…?” Ed encouraged.

“Kelly,” she murmured softly “you still have feelings for her”

“What?” Ed laughed (which, this time thankfully, didn’t start up another coughing fit) “no,” he shook his head “I mean, sure I’d thought of the two of us getting back together, but come on, we were both trapped in an alien zoo and we nearly ended up strangling each other before you and Isaac found us,” he gave her a weak smile “I think that ship has sailed. And we both know it”

“Really?” she asked uncertainly.

“Really,” he nodded “and, as for that other stuff, hey, you think that all of that doesn’t bother me? It does, it really does. Hell, I nearly had a heart attack when Dr. Finn and Kelly told me that you were going to be the one taking care of me. I nearly killed myself climbing up here because I didn’t want to die of embarrassment because I’d asked you to help me get to the toilet,” he explained “trust me, the thought of your hands on my bare skin is…,” he trailed off, feeling his face heat up “well, you get the idea” he finally mumbled.

She shifted, turning to face him, biting her lip uncertainly.

“So…now what?” she asked.

“I don’t know” he admitted.

“Yeah,” she nodded, looking away again “neither do I,” she fidgeted “I need to go,” she finally murmured “Ensign Keyali can’t sub for me all week after all” she tried for a smile and failed miserably as she stood up, absently fingering the torn sleeve on her jacket as she finished lacing up her boots.

“Alara, wait—” Ed tried

“I’ll see you in three hours” she said, stopping him before she slipped down the stairs and out the doors.

Now alone, Ed flopped back against the pillows, staring up at the ceiling,

“Crap” he swore…

******

Alara didn’t go to the bridge, she knew she should have, but instead found herself in sickbay outside Claire’s office.

“Come in,” Claire called from the other side, smiling as she saw the young Xelayan “Alara, good to see you,” she gestured to the chair across from her “I have some good news,” she declared as Alara sat down “the latest scans of Captain Mercer show that that viral agents in his bloodstream has gone down significantly,” she explained “I think he’ll need just one more injection and then he’ll probably be back on his feet in no time”

“That’s good to hear” Alara nodded.

“Yes it is,” Claire nodded “how’s he been by the way?” she wondered “not giving you too much trouble I hope?”

“No,” Alara’s voice cracked slightly as she answered “no trouble”

Claire’s eyes narrowed as she leaned forwards.

“Is everything OK?” she asked “you’re not getting sick yourself are you?”

“No, no, I’m…,” Alara swallowed “I’m…fine” there was that squeaky crack in her voice again.

“Out with it” Claire ordered, using her ‘mom’ voice, which no doubt worked wonders on her boys and seemed to also work on Xelayan security chiefs as well.

“Can you…remove feelings?” Alara asked.

“I’m sorry?” Claire blinked in clear confusion.

Alara stood up and began to pace.

“Feelings,” she repeated “like, romantic ones, can you just…stop them?”

“No,” Claire stated firmly “not only is that completely and utterly unethical, it would also cause unpredictable changes to brain chemistry, resulting in serious personality changes,” she explained.

She stood up, coming around the desk to gently take Alara by the shoulders and then guide her back down into the chair.

“Now,” she began “does this sudden request have anything to do with a certain captain?”

“How did you…?” Alara trailed off, scowling “Kelly” she realized.

“My fault,” Claire assured her “I forced it out of her,” she hadn’t, not really, but Alara didn’t need to know that just yet “so?” she asked.

Alara sighed heavily.

“He kissed me” she explained.

“Wait,” Claire held up her hand “when you say ‘kiss’, exactly what kind of kiss are we talking about here? An actual kiss? Or was like a peck on the cheek?”

“The second, I guess?” Alara shrugged “but, it felt like a real kiss” she explained.

“Well,” Claire sighed “sounds like that you two have to talk this out and decide where to go from here”

Alara sighed again.

“I knew you’d say something like that,” she muttered as she stood up “oh,” she paused in the door “uh…”

Claire smiled knowingly.

“Doctor-patient confidentiality, sweetie” she told her.

“Thanks” Alara nodded, quickly slipping out the doors.

Settling down behind her desk again, Claire sighed.

“Those two are such idiots” she muttered to no one in particular… 

******

Kelly looked up at the chime at her door.

“Come in,” she called “hey,” she grinned as she saw Alara “how’s Ed doing? Getting better I hope?”

“Oh yeah,” Alara nodded as she came in “he’s doing good, real good, his color’s improving, he’s breathing easier, he kissed me. Real good”

“Whoa! Whoa!” Kelly held up her hands “wait a minute, back up, he _kissed_ you?!”

“On the cheek!” Alara exclaimed.

“That’s still a kiss!” Kelly countered. She took a breath “so? What happened next? Did you kiss him back?”

“I can’t do that!” Alara yelped.

“Why not?” Kelly asked.

“Not you too!” Alara groaned, flopping down onto the sofa.

“Hey, I’m trying to be supportive here!” Kelly objected “you’re the one who’s being stupid,” she felt rather smug about that last point as she joined Alara on the sofa “so?” she asked.

Alara sighed heavily.

“If Ed and I were to…you know,” she began “would you really be OK with it?”

“Yes,” Kelly answered without hesitation “I’m not going to lie and say that I don’t miss Ed that way, but…,” she trailed off and shook her head “we’ve both moved on,” she explained “in fact, did you know I’m kinda seeing someone myself?”

Alara looked up.

“Really?” she asked, surprised.

“Yeah,” Kelly nodded “Cassius”

“The teacher?”

“That’s the one,” Kelly nodded “but, don’t tell anyone, huh?” she requested “especially not Ed. Knowing him, he’ll probably do something stupid like a drive-by in a shuttle or something,” she shook her head, pausing to clear her throat “anyway, back to your problem,”

Alara groaned, grabbing and dropping a pillow over her face.

“You do know that I sweated and drooled all over that pillow, right?” Kelly felt the need to point out.

“Ew!” Alara flung the pillow as far away from her as possible.

To her credit, Kelly was able to largely smother her laugh.

“OK, now, come on, let’s be serious here,” she encouraged “you like Ed”

“It’s not that simple!” Alara objected “for one thing, the Union doesn’t like it when captains date their subordinates”

“True,” Kelly nodded “but, there’s no rule expressly forbidding it either”

“There isn’t it?” Alara’s head popped up like the proverbial jack-in-the-box.

“There isn’t,” Kelly nodded “of course the admiralty doesn’t like to _encourage_ captains to start dating members of their crew, but they know that they can’t stop it either,” she explained “it’s one of those _‘as long as you keep a clear head about it, we won’t bother you’_ things”

“I didn’t know that!” Alara was sitting up now “why didn’t I know that?!” she demanded.

“Well, like I said, the Union doesn’t want to encourage it,” Kelly explained “so they don’t exactly go around advertis—hey, where are you going?”

“Get better soon, Kelly, bye!” Alara called out behind her as she disappeared through the doors.

Still sitting on the couch, Kelly grinned to herself.

“Go get him” she chuckled…

******

Alara slowed as she rounded the corner. Easy, she told herself. Making a detour, she stepped into her own quarters.

“Computer, access Union database” she requested.

“ _Union database accessed_ ”

“Are there any restrictions on Union captains dating officers under their command?”

“ _There are some restrictions on Union captains engaging in relationships with officers under their command,_ ” the computer replied “ _both parties are required to submit official notice to Union Central of the change in their relationship. Secondly, both parties are encouraged to maintain profession decorum while on duty_ ”

Alara took a breath, she needed to phrase this next question very carefully.

“But the Union _does not_ forbid captains from dating their direct subordinates?”

“ _There are currently no official restriction against captains engaging in romantic relationships with officers under their direct command according to current Union codes of conduct_ ”

Alara nodded to herself as she approached the synthesizer, requesting another antiviral for Ed.

“What time is it?” she asked.

“ _The time is 13:30 hours_ ”

Half an hour until Ed’s final injection. Perfect. Setting the multijector aside, she made her way to the bathroom, stripping off her uniform as she went, if she was going to do this, she was going to do it right…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think we're almost at the end here folks :=)


	7. Stupid Questions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter EIGHT! Only more to go! Enjoy folks! :=)

******

While Alara had been talking with, first Claire, and then Kelly, Ed had slept. Finally waking, he looked around his now-empty quarters and admitted that, while he felt much better physically, he felt really depressed.

Idiot! Idiot! Why he did have to kiss her?! He should have just left alone, waited until he’d gotten better and then asked her out to dinner. But no, because he was a colossal idiot, not only had he ruined any chances of dating Alara he’d also killed a good friendship too.

Sighing, he tugged the pillow closer, debating if he should get up or not, he _did_ feel better.

Grumbling, he threw back the covers, pulling his robe around himself tighter.

“Computer, entertainment database”

“ _Entertainment database accessed_ ”

“Movie,” Ed requested as he slowly made his way down the stairs and to the synthesizer “something happy” he added as he punched in an order for some soup.

“ _There are approximately one thousand results within the entertainment database that conform to search request. Please specify_ ”

“I don’t know!” Ed groaned “happy! Something happy! Uh… _The Sound of Music_ , play that”

Plopping down on the sofa, he scowled as the opening shots of the Austrian Alps were suddenly interrupted by an call.

“ _Hey,_ ” Kelly waved from the other side of the screen “ _god, you look terrible_ ”

“Yeah? You’re no prize either right now” Ed countered.

“ _Well, you’re in a cheerful mood,_ ” Kelly remarked, taking the insult in good stride “ _so, anyway, I just talked to Alara and—_ ” she was cut off by Ed’s loud, drawn-out anguished groan “ _you done?_ ” she finally asked as he stopped.

He shrugged.

“ _So, anyway,_ ” she continued “ _just thought that you should know that I mentioned to her that there’s no official rule against captains dating their crew and she was out of here like a shot_ ”

Ed paused, spoon halfway to his mouth.

“How did she react?” he asked slowly “I mean, did she seem…happy? Angry? Somewhere in between?”

“ _Eager_ ” Kelly nodded.

“Eager,” Ed repeated slowly, frowning “that tells me nothing!”

“ _Hey, I’m just passing the information along,_ ” Kelly dismissed “ _it’s up to_ you _to decide what to do with it_ ”

“Thanks,” Ed sneered “thanks a lot”

“ _Happy to help_ ” Kelly beamed, the sarcasm just dripping in her tone as she ended the call…


	8. Stupid, Sappy Endings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are folks! Chapter EIGHT of NINE!! Enjoy!! :=)

******

_Ed was running, legs pounding, little clouds of dust kicking up behind him as he panted for breath. Chancing a look over his shoulder, he gasped for breath as his pursuers came closer, the hoofs of the horses pounding across the sand as they came closer and closer._

_Krill on horseback, who would have thought!_

_Gasping, his lungs burning, Ed suddenly skidded to a stop as another rider suddenly bore down on him from the other direction, long dark hair fanning out behind her from under the Stetson as Alara suddenly stretched out a hand towards Ed, snagging his arm and hauling him up and behind her into the saddle._

_Grinning at him over her shoulder, she spurned the horse on, the Krill giving chase as a train whistle blared out in the distance, a puff of smoke appearing over the horizon._

_“Hold on!” Alara called out to Ed._

_Spurring the horse on harder, they raced for the speeding train, their pursuers hot on their trail._

_“Are you sure you know what you’re doing here?!” Ed called out._

_“Trust me!” Alara called back as she tugged on the reigns hard, pulling the horse right next to the tracks as the train sped past “grab on!!” she urged as the train began to rapidly escape from them, the hoof beats of the Krill coming closer…_

Suddenly, there was a bright light shining in Ed’s eyes. Why was there a bright light shining in his eyes?

“ _Ed?_ ” Kelly’s voice asked, but it sounded distant, far away.

Blinking harder and slower, he _finally_ got his eyes to cooperate. He was laying facedown—thankfully still on the sofa—a puddle of drool now pooling under his cheek. Unsticking his head from the pillow, he realized that the light was coming from a penlight that Claire was shining into each of his eyes. Looking past the annoying light, he saw Alara and Kelly standing just behind Claire, both of them peering intently at him over each of her shoulders.

“Wha…what’s going on?” he finally managed to slur out.

“Alara came to give you your final injection and when you didn’t wake up, she called us,” Claire explained as she put the penlight away and then held out another instrument to his mouth “blow into this please,” she requested.

Frowning, Ed did as instructed, putting the tube between his lips and blowing, the device beeping. Pulling it away, Claire studied it.

“Not green,” she pleaded “not—damn it”

“Green?” Kelly asked.

“Green” Claire nodded.

“Green!” Alara groaned, throwing her head back in clear exasperation.

“What does ‘green’ mean?” Ed asked “will somebody tell me just what is going on?”

“You’ve entered the final stage Karillian sleeping sickness,” Claire explained “the antivirals I’ve been having Alara give you were supposed to ward off the worst of the symptoms, but they don’t always work unfortunately”

“So…I’m _not_ due for my final injection yet” Ed guessed.

“No,” Claire confirmed “I’m afraid that you’ll probably be laid up for a few more days,” she explained as she put her medkit away “on the upside, Commander Greyson here is on the mend” she added.

“Yeah, my throat feels like I swallowed broken glass, but other than that I feel _great_ ” Kelly commented sarcastically, her voice raspy and scratchy.

“Nice voice” Ed remarked.

“Bite me, Ed”

“Now, Captain,” Claire snapped her fingers to get his attention “you’re probably going to be feeling very sleepy over the next few days,” she explained “try not to fall asleep as much as you can, and take your medicine, this time one injection once every two hours,” she continued. She paused, glancing at Alara, who Ed suddenly noticed was out of uniform “but somehow,” Claire picked up “I don’t think you’ll be having too much trouble staying awake” she chuckled.

With that rather suggestive comment, she quickly and quietly guided Kelly out of the room, leaving Alara behind

As the doors slid shut, Ed looked up at Alara, taking note of her deep red and purple robes, which made her seem softer, more at ease than her uniform did, while at the same time highlighting her fair skin and dark hair.

“It, uh casual Friday or something?” he wondered, nodding towards her attire.

“Huh?” she looked down at herself, startled, as if just remembering the clothes “oh! No, I just…well I’m off-duty, so I figured, why not get a little dressed up, you know?” she gave a little spin “you like it?” she asked, her tone soft, coy even.

“Yeah,” Ed nodded “yeah, a lot. You look great”

“Oh,” she ducked her head bashfully, the motion drawing his attention to the fine crystals or gems in her hair, which danced and sparkled in the light “thanks,” she murmured “they’re traditional Xelayan robes, actually” she explained, and was that makeup on her face?

“No kidding?” Ed chuckled “well, wherever they come from, they look good on you,”

“Thanks,”

Awkward silence suddenly descended on them.

“Look, about earlier…” they both suddenly began, and then broke off, both giggling in embarrassment.

“You go first” Ed encouraged.

“No, no,” Alara shook her head “you go” she encouraged

“Uh, OK,” Ed nodded “anyway, about earlier,” he began “when I…you know…I’m sorry, I was out of line, and—”

“No,” Alara interrupted gently “no, you weren’t out of line, not really,” she explained as she settled down beside him “after I left, I had a talk with Kelly”

Ed nodded.

“That’s right, she called me,” he remembered “told me that _she_ told you that the Union…”

“…doesn’t have any ‘official’ rules against captains dating their crewmembers” Alara finished.

“Right,” Ed nodded. He frowned “wait…is that…why you got all dressed up?” he asked hesitantly “was…,” he waved a hand towards her general form “…all of this… _this_ …for me?”

Again, Alara ducked her head bashfully.

“It was, yeah” she nodded softly.

“Was?” Ed asked. Had she suddenly changed her mind? God he hoped not.

“Well…,” she began “I was originally going to drop by and, after I gave you your final injection, I was planning on asking you out. _But…_ ”

“…but then you found me passed out on the couch looking like a dead fish” he nodded.

“Basically,” she shrugged. She reached out then, lightly taking one his hands in her own, lightly lacing their fingers together “would you?” she asked, her tone deathly serious “go out with me, I mean? If, if I asked that is?” she added.

“You really got to ask?” Ed grinned.

“No,” she grinned “but, don’t you?”

Ed blinked, his virus-addled brain needing a few seconds to catch up. Grinning as he finally got it, he reached out, taking her other hand, lacing their fingers together. Clearing his throat, he jutted his chin out and said in his best haughty and snobbish-sounding voice (no mean feat with a sore throat).

“Would you go out with me?” before adding “once I can take a breath without hacking up both of my lungs that is?”

Alara ducked her head bashfully again, but her smile could light up a black hole.

“Yes,” she nodded “I will,” she looked up shyly at him “can I…?” she trailed off.

“Can you…what?” Ed asked.

She shook her head.

“Just…go with me on this, OK?” reaching out, she carefully wound her arms around his waist, pulling him closer, nestling her head against his shoulder, under his chin.

Ed’s mind went blank, all thoughts of the ship, his duty as captain, even the stupid virus flying through his veins, all of it was gone, replaced by the soft warm sensation of Alara in his arms.

“I’ve wanted to do this for a while” she murmured into his chest.

“Yeah?” Ed asked, his voice soft, as if speaking too loudly would somehow break the spell that had fallen over them both.

“Yeah,” she nodded “ever since I first came in here and saw you laying here, I just wanted to hug you and never let go” she explained.

“Hey, I’m not going to complain,” Ed chuckled, which brought on a coughing fit. Pulling away, Alara quickly helped him stay upright as he finished hacking up most of his internal organs “hey,” he took a breath “I think that actually did something,” he grinned “I can breathe again”

“That’s great!” Alara grinned as Ed suddenly put a hand to his head “Ed?” she asked.

“Oh, boy, the doc wasn’t kidding about feeling sleepy,” he murmured, suddenly feeling fizzy and drained as he laid back, grumbling as Alara suddenly shook him awake.

“Hey, hey, remember, try not to fall asleep” she urged him.

“Easier said than done,” he grumbled, sitting up and slapping himself on each cheek “ugh, put on a movie or something” he requested.

“Good idea,” she nodded, standing up and going over to the synthesizer “how’s something to eat sound?”

“Sounds good to me” Ed murmured, yawning widely.

Coming back over with a pair of plates, Alara set them down on the coffee table before settling down on the sofa next to him, absently reaching out to straighten the pillows between them.

“So,” she began, turning to him “what did you want to watch?”

“Don’t know,” Ed yawned “something that’ll keep me up,” he frowned, suddenly remembering his odd dream “a Western” he decided.

“Isn’t that…a little _too_ exciting?” Alara wondered, frowning.

“Hey, doc’s said I need to stay awake, didn’t she?” Ed countered.

“I guess so,” Alara agreed with a shrug. Turning to him, she reached out, throwing an arm over the back of the sofa and around his shoulders “c’mere” she murmured, pulling him close.

“Whenever I get over this stupid thing,” Ed began “I’m going to take you out on a real date” he vowed.

“Ed, you don’t have to do that” Alara dismissed.

“I don’t?” Ed echoed skeptically.

“No,” she shook her head, leaning down to place a gentle kiss to the top of his head, suddenly pulling away quickly “uh, Ed? Not to sound insulting, but…you stink”

Ed frowned and lifted his shirt collar to his nose, sniffing

“I can’t smell anything” he said.

“Just take my word for it, you stink” she stated.

“That bad?” he asked.

“That bad” she nodded.

Grunting, Ed pushed himself up.

“Hey, wha, where are you going?” she asked, watching in confusion as he slowly wobbled upright to his feet.

“Shower” he answered, still wobbling.

“Ed, you can barely stand!” Alara exclaimed, quickly getting to her own feet and grabbing onto his shoulders, guiding him back down to the sofa “just lie down,” she said “I’m not going to run away screaming just because you smell,” she assured him “well…not right away, anyway” she added, giggling as Ed glowered at her and held up a pillow threateningly.

“Hey, I have any excuse, I’m sick” he pointed out.

“You can’t always use that as an excuse, you know,” she reminded him “I’m friends with your ex-wife, remember?”

“I remember,” Ed grumbled “in fact, I have nightmares about that” he added.

They both grinned shyly at each other, giggling like a pair of teenagers.

“You know what?” Alara asked “I think I’m going to enjoy bending Union rules”

Ed’s grin widened.

“Me too” he beamed.

Returning his smile, Alara leaned down, smiling as Ed stiffened.

“It’s OK, I’m immune to Karilian sleeping sickness, remember?” she chuckled.

Relaxing, Ed laid back, feeling his skin tingle all over as she leaned down. She was going to kiss him, and it would be for real, not some stupid dream, a real kiss. He suddenly felt his brain regress back to middle school, or maybe even elementary school.

 _‘Alara likes me,’_ he thought giddily _‘Alara’s going to kiss me’_

And then he sneezed.

Right into her face.

Rearing back, Alara stared at him, wide-eyed.

“Oh! _God!!!_ ” he groaned “Alara, I am so, _**so**_ —”

“It’s all right,” she dismissed, wiping at her face “just…warn me next time, please?”

“Sorry,” Ed sniffled “can we try that again?”

Alara held out a tissue towards him.

“First, blow your nose,” she instructed “you got…” she gestured towards her own nose.

Doing as instructed (never let it be said that he disobeyed orders), Ed tossed the tissue away, turning back to her. Settling back down next to him, she reached out, gently taking his shoulders.

For a moment, they remained there, then, Alara gently moved her hands up to cup his face, pulling him close as she leaned in again, stopping just short of lip-on-lip contact.

“No sneezing this time, got it?”

“Got it” he whispered.

“Good,” she nodded just before she _finally_ closed the distance between them, gently pressing her lips to his. Pulling away, she chuckled at the stupid grin on his face “I, uh, take it that you liked that?” she asked.

“Uh-huh” Ed nodded, still grinning like the proverbial loon.

“Me too,” Alara nodded before she suddenly brightened “oh, I just remembered,” she reached into a pocket of her robes “I got you this” she held up a small item, the sight of which snapped Ed out of his stupor, and taking it from her, he laughed.

“A lollipop” he chuckled.

“I didn’t know what flavor you’d like,” Alara explained “so, I just went with the first version in the menu”

“Doesn’t matter,” Ed dismissed as he unwrapped the candy and popped it into his mouth “hey, orange”

“I thought it was lemon?”

“Mm-mm,” Ed shook his head, taking the lollipop out and holding it up to the light “see? Orange”

“Huh,” Alara mused “well, you’re vision’s better than mine”

“Huh?” Ed asked.

“Oh, Humans can see more shades of color than Xelayans,” she explained “we’re not exactly ‘colorblind’, but I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between, say ‘eggshell’ and ‘white’ unless you told me”

“Hey, you’re preaching to the choir here,” Ed laughed, happily popping the lollipop back into his mouth “I never understood that difference either” he dismissed around said lollipop, earning a chuckle from her.

“So, movie?” she asked.

“Oh, right,” Ed nodded “uh, you pick”

Alara grinned.

“I know just the one,” she beamed “computer, movie,” she called out “ _Blazing Saddles_ ”

As the computer chirped and the opening titles began to roll, she leaned back, pulling him close.

“You know something?” Ed mused “I think this bug is the best thing to happen to either of us”

“I think so too” Alara agreed, leaning into press a kiss to his temple as they both settled in to watch the movie…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one more to go :=)


	9. Really Stupid, Sappy Epilogues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are folks, the ninth and final chapter of "In Sickness and Health", so enjoy! :=)

******

**One week later…**

As it happened, the bug stayed in Ed’s system for the rest of the week. A week where he spent a majority of the time with a bright red runny nose and sore throat that—at best—felt like he’d swallowed something large, spiky, and on fire. On the upside, most of that week was also spent being cuddled and generally pampered by Alara, which had been very nice.

But, as the old say went, all good things must come to an end, and now that he was no longer contagious and could _finally_ leave his quarters, Alara had—reluctantly—returned to her regular duty shifts. The same of which couldn’t be said for Ed himself who still had yet to be cleared for active duty despite no longer being a walking plague carrier.

Clearing his still-sore throat as he downed a gulp of warm lemon tea, Ed tugged down his shirt, smoothing it out as he peered intently at his reflection over the sink, wrinkling his still-red nose in disgust at what he saw. As if it wasn’t bad enough that it was red enough to guide Santa’s sleigh the skin at the very end of his nose also appeared to be _peeling_ off, in fact there was a particularly _large_ piece of dead skin dangling off.

Grimacing, he reached up and peeled it off with no pain or blood.

“Ugh,” quickly washing his hands, he gave his face a quick scrub with a damp towel, nodding at his much more refreshed complexion “better,” he decided as the chime rang “just a second!” hurriedly making his way down the stairs, he answered the door.

“Hey,” Kelly greeted “wow,” she reared back slightly “won’t you guide my sleigh tonight?” she laughed.

“Ha-ha,” Ed deadpanned “you look in a mirror lately?” he shot back.

Kelly’s hand reflexively went up to touch her own bright red nose, wincing as she did so.

“OK, you win,” she sighed as she stepped inside the room “so, what’d you need?” she asked as she settled down on the sofa “your message sounded urgent”

In response, Ed gestured towards his outfit.

“Does this say ‘official first date’ or not?” he asked.

“Oh, something tells me that you and Alara are doing good, huh?” Kelly grinned.

“Yeah, yeah,” Ed blushed “come on, be honest here,” he gestured towards his outfit again “huh?”

Kelly frowned.

“Unbutton two buttons,” she began “roll up your sleeves a bit, and don’t stand at attention, makes you look like you’re facing a dress inspection”

Doing as instructed, Ed slumped, letting out a tired sigh.

“Maybe this was a bad idea” he muttered.

“Oh, no!” Kelly was up and out of her seat in an instant “no, no way, Ed!” grabbing his shoulders, she physically turned him towards the doors and began to march him in that direction “look, that girl is head-over-heels for you” she explained as they reached the doors, Ed throwing out both arms to try and stop himself from falling through the now-open doors.

“Don’t care! Don’t care!” he panted out “bad idea! Totally, one hundred percent bad idea!”

“Totally, one hundred good idea!” Kelly retorted, giving him a hard shove “god! You’ve gotten fat!” she panted out as he fell through the doors to land in an undignified sprawl on the carpeting.

Slowing rolling up into a sitting position, he sighed and looked up at her.

“What if we get serious?” he asked “I mean, _really_ serious, what if we get married one day? What about…,” he gestured between the two of them “…us?” he finished.

“As long as I get to be the maid of honor, I’m fine,” Kelly shrugged as Ed got to his feet “look, Ed, you and I…we’re done,” she began “we’ve ‘been’ done for close to two years now. I’ve moved on, and now, it’s time you should too”

“Wha, wait, you’ve moved on?” Ed echoed “with who? When?”

“Not important,” Kelly dismissed. Reaching out, she smoothed out his shirt front and then, leaning in, placed a gentle kiss on his cheek “go on your date, have fun, and don’t do anything stupid”

“Now I remembered why I married you in the first place” Ed grinned.

“Yeah, well, just don’t forget that you divorced me too,” Kelly reminded him “now,” she pointed down the corridor “march”

“Actually, it’s…that way” Ed pointed in the opposite direction that she was.

“Ed!”

“Marching! On it!” giving her a mock salute, Ed turned and headed down the corridor….

******

Alara sank down onto her bed with an annoyed huff, turning to look towards the outfit that Ed had suggested for their date. As first dates went, she couldn’t remember being asked to wear _that_ , but at the same time, Ed had constantly knocked her opinions about herself on their side.

Nodding to herself, she grabbed the attire and threw it on…

******

Ed took a breath of simulated air as he looked around the program, nodding to himself in satisfaction as the doors to the simulator slid open behind him. Turning, he grinned as he spied Alara, waving to her.

“Hey” he grinned.

“Hey,” she replied distractedly as she looked around “where are we supposed to be?” she asked.

“Earth,” Ed began “California Territory, the height of the gold rush” he explained as he led to the two holographic horses over.

“You know, when you said that you wanted to base our first date on a dream you had, I was a little worried” Alara chuckled.

Ed blushed.

“Trust me, I wasn’t having _those_ kind of dreams,” he chuckled. He sobered and took a step towards her “is this…too much?” he wondered “because I can change it, no problem,” he added hastily “seriously, no trouble”

“No, no,” Alara shook her head “it’s just…surprising, that’s all,” she explained. Straightening her spine, she put on the wide-brimmed Stetson, tugging the brim down with a smirk before she leaned in and placed a gentle to his lips, grinning at him as she pulled away “saddle up, partner”

Grinning, Ed took one horse by the reigns and swung himself up into the saddle, Alara following with the other horse. Grinning at each other, they both spurned the horses on, a trio of Krill on horseback suddenly emerging from around the bend, guns drawn.

Glancing over at Ed, Alara shook her head.

“You have weird dreams, Ed” she noted.

“Yeah,” he agreed “problem?” he wondered.

“No,” she shook her head “not really”

“Good” Ed grinned.

“Good” she grinned back as they both drew their own guns and took aim at the mounted Krill…

**END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it! We are done! Hope everybody enjoyed this from start to finish! :=). Thanks to everyone who left kudos and comments :=). Keep any eye for more Edlara fics from me, coming soon hopefully :=).
> 
> Thanks again  
> \--AXEe :=)

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought :=)


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